Railcar load tie-down systems are used to securely ship loads such as lumber, pipe, etc. U.S. Pat. No. 5,460,465 issued Oct. 24, 1995 discloses one such system which employs a plurality of spaced-apart belts, each of which are anchored at one end to one side of the railcar. Each belt can be routed over the load and wound upon a winch provided on the opposed side of the railcar. The winch is then tightened to tension the belt against the load.
It is relatively common for railcars to make "empty" return trips after delivery of a load to a destination, or to travel "empty" to a location at which a load is to be placed upon the railcar. Storage and handling of the aforementioned belts can be problematic during such "empty" trips.
It is known to provide a belt storage box on the railcar for each belt. The storage boxes are located near the points at which the respective belt ends are fixed to the railcar. If a belt is not required for load securement as aforesaid, a belt winding tool is used to wind into a tight coil all but the last few feet of the belt near the belt end fixed to the railcar. The coiled belt portion is then stuffed into the storage box provided for that belt. This prior art technique is timeconsuming and inefficient. The present invention improves upon the art by facilitating in situ winding and storage of railcar load tie-down belts.